A Life to Choose
by Artistia
Summary: Sequel to Greatest Christmas Present. Yumi tells what she was doing for 6 years, but now she has a problem. She has to choose between her life in America and her life with Sachiko. And how will Sachiko react if she finds her love might leave her again.


A/N: Ya'll better be real happy that I don't have a life and was bored so I was able to write this story in about 3 hours. it turned out longer than I thought it would and I specifically told myself when I sat down to write this "Artistia, do not make this longer than the first one," and what do I do, double the length, *sigh*Anyway, some of you asked for the sequel to "Greatest Christmas Present", which was only a thought then because I didn't think that so many would want a sequel, but anyway, here it is. More from me at the bottom, but start reading... and don't forget to Review... I like reading them, plus they're helpful.

Disclaimer: I am up to my eye sockets with student loans so obviously I don't own anything. And if I did own this, don't you think I would have dub the novels in english by now?

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**A Life to Choose**

Yumi woke up early and glanced around. She was in Sachiko's room, snuggled against her love. These past few days have been some of the best of her life. _I could get used to this, _Yumi thought, _but I know that I can't get too used to it. _Yumi sighed and sat up, leaving Sachiko's embrace. Sachiko uttered a sleepy moan of protest that Yumi had to smile at. She leaned over Sachiko and placed a kiss on her lips. Even though Sachiko was dead asleep, Yumi felt her kiss back. Breaking the kiss, Yumi smiled and pushed the hair out of Sachiko's face. She kissed her forehead before leaving the room to take a shower.

She entered the bathroom, and turned the shower on. As she was already bare from the previous night's activities, she hopped straight in the shower. Yumi shivered as the cool water hit her heated skin. As the water began to heat up, she thought about the life she has led for the past 6 years. Thinking back, to that day at the airport, she wondered if she had stayed, would things have turned out differently.

_Flashback_

_It was the day after graduation, and Yumi was at the airport saying goodbye to her family. It was probably one of the most difficult aspects of this decision to leave but she knew that it had to be done. After hugging each of them, they left; tears just a breath away. Yumi turned and walked towards the gate but was stopped by two very familiar faces._

_"You weren't thinking about leaving without saying good-bye now were you, Yumi-chan?" the taller, mischievous blonde asked with a grin._

_"Of course not Sei-sama, Youko-sama, I wasn't even thinking about it. I was just going to do it," Yumi replied with a grin._

_Youko rolled her eyes, "Don't start with that Yumi-chan."_

_"What are you two doing here?" Yumi asked._

_"We- I wanted to make sure that you really want to do this. You don't have to go. Yumi-chan, Sachiko loves you, she still loves you," Youko said._

_Sei nodded her head, "Sachiko is very much in love with you, not that bastard Kashiwagi."_

_"I know," Yumi murmured._

_"What?!" Youko and Sei shouted at the same time. This caused several people to stare at them, but with a glare from Youko, they all turned back to their own business._

_"I know that Onee-sama, Sachiko, loves me and is in love with me," Yumi repeated carefully._

_"Then, why?" Sei asked, dumbfounded._

_Yumi sighed, "Because Sachiko has made her choice and there is no changing it. I need to move on, and I can't do that if I stay here. If I stay here, I'll continue to mope and that won't do me any good. I need time to myself, away from people I know, away from the Ogasawaras and their empire."_

_Youko looked at Yumi thoughtfully, "You've grown these past few years, Yumi. Gone is the shy, stammering girl that I first met three years ago, and is replaced with a wise, strong young woman."_

_Yumi looked Youko in the eyes with a sad smile "Life goes on, and it is just going to make me stronger. I don't know when I'm coming back, or even if I ever am. I'll call you when I get where I'm going."_

_Over the speakers, she heard the announcement that her flight was boarding. "I have to go," she said as she walked past them._

_"One last thing Yumi-ch-, Yumi," Youko started, "Why America?"_

_Yumi smiled at them before turning back to the gate. Sei thought she was going to leave before they got their answer, but they distinctly heard her small voice, "I was born there, Youko-sama; it is the only home I have left to turn to, and it's history, it's revolution is mine as well." And then, she was gone._

_End Flashback_

As the water started to get hotter, and the steam started to rise, she turned the water off, and got out of the shower. While she dried herself off, Yumi continued to think. The plane took her to Los Angles, where she caught a connecting plane to Philadelphia. There she entered the University of Philadelphia. With hard work, and sheer determination, she obtained Master's degrees in U.S and French History. Granted it only took her about 5 years but she still did it (A/N: I know someone who got their BA and Masters in only 5 years so it is possible… I wouldn't want to do it, but it does happen). The Dean of the University, impressed with her work, hired her to teach a course on the American Revolution, and another on the French Revolution. Yumi was relatively happy with her life. She was never complete because she did not have her love, but she was as happy as possible without Sachiko.

While she lived in America, she grew and became the stunning bombshell that she is now. Yumi never ran out of admirers, both male and female. Students, professors, everyone loved her. Her eyes were what captivated most people. Warm, kind eyes that held wisdom, but an underlying tone of pain and loneliness.

Yumi wrapped her towel around her and went back to the room. She had already moved some of her things in with Sachiko, seeing as they were now dating. Yumi smiled at the sight of her lover turning over in the bed, trying to wake up. _She's still the same, _Yumi thought. She walked over and decided to help her wake up.

"Sachiko," she murmured, stroking her cheek.

Said person opened her eyes sleepily, "Let me sleep some more."

"I'm afraid not, my love, you have to wake up," Yumi replied, still stroking her cheek.

"I don't want to," Sachiko muttered, still staring at her half-awake.

Yumi gave her a little grin, "I know how to wake you up." She dropped her towel, and was pleased to see that she now had Sachiko's complete attention. Still giving Sachiko a leering grin, she walked over to the dresser and slowly put on her under garments, almost teasing her girlfriend. Yumi was not surprised when she heard the sounds of Sachiko hurriedly getting out of bed. She moaned when she felt Sachiko arms around her waist, and her lips on her neck, suckling, branding her. Turning around, she put her arms around Sachiko's neck, bringing her in for a kiss. As soon as their lips touched, their mouths opened, tongues dancing in a swirl of passion.

Reluctantly pulling back for air, Yumi gasped in between breaths, "Are you awake now?"

Sachiko laughed, Yumi would never get tired of hearing that sound. "Yes, my love, I'm awake. I'll shower real fast then we can go down and eat breakfast. After, how about we pack a lunch and spend the day lost in the gardens down by the lake."

"Sounds good to me," Yumi smiled before giving her another kiss. After the kiss was broken, Sachiko left to take a quick shower. When she was done, they both finished dressing, which took awhile as Sachiko kept getting… distracted, before going and eating breakfast with Sachiko's mother.

When they retrieved their packed lunch from the kitchen staff, it seemed Sachiko had planned this last night and told them ahead of time, they headed off to the lake on the far side of Sachiko's estate.

The spread out a blanket on the grass, and sat, snuggled against each other, in companionable silence.

"Yumi," Sachiko started after awhile.

"Hmm," Yumi replied.

"Are you going to leave me again," she asked looking at the still water of the lake.

Yumi turned to look at her a moment before turning back to stare at the water as well, "Why would you think that?"

Sachiko sighed, "It's just a feeling that I haven't been able to shake. The past few days have been heaven and I haven't been this happy in a long time, but… all we've talked about has been what I was doing all these years without you. You never once mentioned anything about yourself."

"Alright," Yumi turned finally making eye contact with her love, "I'll answer your questions."

"What do you do for a living?"

Yumi laughed, "This might come as a surprise to you but I'm a professor at the University of Philadelphia."

"A professor," Sachiko said in amazement, "but that means that you have a master's degree already."

"Yes," Yumi replied, "It was hard work, doubling up on classes ever semester, including the summer term, but I got through it."

"What do you teach?"

"I teach 2 classes: one is on the American Revolution and the other is on the French Revolution. Every now and then I am asked to teach the basic history class, but I specialize in the Revolutions," Yumi responded.

"Okay, what prompted you to come back to Japan when you did," Sachiko continued.

"Well, that's a funny story actually," Yumi laughed.

_Flashback _

_About two and a half weeks earlier._

"_Yoshino are you sure that Yumi-chan will be here," Rei asked._

"_Yeah, Yoshino-sama, are sure you got the right Fukuzawa Yumi?" Touko asked with skepticism. _

_Irritably, Yoshino replied, "Yes I'm sure. My investigations showed that she goes to this university. Now, all we have to do is get some information on where to find her. With that she walked up to what looked like the reception/information desk. "Umm excuse me," she said in English, "I'm looking for Fuk- Yumi Fukuzawa."_

_Before she could say anything else the lady at the desk replied, "Office 310, the stairs are in that direction," she pointed to the left. "She has class right now but she should be there in about 10 minutes."_

"_Wow," Rei said after walking away from the desk, "Yumi-chan must be pretty well known if she didn't even have to look her up."_

_They got to the office and waited. In about 10 minutes, an absolutely gorgeous young woman walked in and set her things on the desk. She then turned and finally noticed she had guests. Turning completely, she stopped and stared at them._

_Fidgeting a little under her gaze Touko spoke up, "We were looking for Yumi Fukuzawa. Is she a student of yours?"_

"_Well," the lady said in Japanese, which surprised the three people, "I know it's been a few years but I didn't think you wouldn't recognize you own Onee-sama, Touko."_

_All three of them jumped. "Yu-Yumi?" Yoshino gulped._

_She smiled at them and they knew at once it was Yumi, "In the flesh."_

"_Onee-sama," Touko cried before smothering her in a hug that was soon followed by two others._

_End Flashback_

"… And after that they talked me into their little scheme, which, by the way, was Touko's idea. I guess she got tired of seeing her favorite cousin mope about," Yumi finished. "Anymore questions?"

"Did you," this question was hard on Sachiko, "Did you have any relationships in America?"

Turning back to look at the water for a moment, before looking back into those smoldering blue eyes, she replied, "Many people asked me. I had quite a few fans, men and women. They all claimed that they wanted to help ease the loneliness in my eyes."

Sachiko swallowed, "And what did you tell them?"

"I told them that the loneliness belonged there, and that it was caused by the one that held my heart. A beautiful raven-haired goddess that stole my broken heart, and kept it for her own," Yumi said carefully, to make sure not to hurt her very fragile goddess.

Sachiko's lip quivered, but she refused to let those tears far. She turned to look back at the water. To look anywhere other than at the person next to her, the person that ran off with her heart. "Are you going to leave?" she murmured, still not looking at her.

Yumi sighed, "I'm afraid that I'll have to return for spring term. However, before I left I made a deal with the dean. I'll teach a class or two every spring term, but fall semester, they're loaning me to Tokyo University," she placed her head on the older woman's shoulder, "I'll be with you for most of the year, and for Christmas."

Sachiko shuddered as she felt Yumi placing kisses on her neck and shoulder. "How long until you have to leave," she managed to get out.

"One week," the younger of the two replied, "so I want to make this week the best of your life, because I don't want you to forget me while I'm gone."

Sachiko sighed and placed a kiss on Yumi's waiting lips, "There is no way I could ever forget you, but if that is the way you want it, that's fine by me."

Yumi shot her a wicked grin before pushing her down on the blanket.

That next week, New Year's week, was spent in absolute bliss, but all too soon, it was over and she was back at the airport saying good-bye again. But this time it was harder. Giving Sachiko one last kiss and murmuring, "Wait for me," she boarded the plane, and the next day she was back in Philadelphia. Everything was the same, but she wasn't. She had left her heart in Japan again with a certain raven-haired goddess, but this time it wasn't broken. It was whole and she was complete, but she tore herself away this time, making it hurt worse.

Two days later, she was in her office, preparing her syllabus for her classes when she heard a knock on her door. "Yes come in," she said.

The door opened, and Yumi instantly stood up in shock, "Sachiko!"

Sachiko locked the door, and then walked over to the desk. Yumi walked around it so that she could be in front of Sachiko. Her blue-eyed deity cupped her cheek and she almost whimpered at the contact. "Why?" she asked.

"You know the first time you left, I was already broken and heartless so it did not hurt as much. Then you came back and returned my heart. This time when you left, taking my heart with you again, it hurt so much that I thought I would truly die, so I promised I'd never let you leave without me again," Sachiko murmured before capturing her in a kiss.

Two hearts merged together, forming one sound, one song, never to be parted again.

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So how was that, finish it for ya. Yeah, I know some of the things are pretty, um, fantastic I guess, but this is Fafiction, and the reason I love it is because everything that you want or wanted to happen, does. If you don't like Yumi's profession or major, just blot it out in your mind, and imput your own. It fit with everything, and I'm a Revolutionary war nut. Any revolution, I luv them all. Anyway, that's it for me for Marimite for awhile (maybe). I'm working on a Sailor Moon UsagixMichiru story that will be longer. Plus I go back to school in a week, and I've got work to do, but I always find freetime, so who knows, I might pop in again.

Artistia


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